Even a small-scale fire at the proposed terminal could engulf five square miles in Fall River, and equally as much in Somerset. And then there are terrorism concerns.

09:40 AM EST on Friday, January 23, 2004

By JESSICA RESNICK-AULT
Journal Staff Writer

FALL RIVER -- The photos were enough to make the 125-member audience gasp.

Each slide outdid the last, showing fires ignited from accidents aboard fuel tankers.

They depicted a devastating gas barge explosion in New York Harbor; the aftermath of a bomb that crippled the destroyer Cole; an oil tanker scarred by a bomb that had ripped a gash in its side.

"This is a small fire, compared with what would happen if liquefied natural gas spilled," said engineer James A. Fay, as he showed the New York Harbor slide.

Fay has studied the LNG import terminal proposed in Fall River, and has designed a mathematical model for the effects of an LNG spill that can be applied to similar facilities proposed for Somerset and Providence.

Industry experts have criticized Fay -- a retired professor of mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and former chairman of the Massachusetts Port Authority -- classifying his research as "outside of the mainstream."

However, his study on the effects of an LNG fire in Boston Harbor is one of three being used by the U.S. Department of Transportation to consider LNG safety.

Last night, Fay addressed residents from Swansea, Fall River, Somerset, Warren, R.I., and neighboring towns. All, he said, will be affected if any of the three LNG sites are approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

He said each project has several components: an unloading pier where a tanker would dock; a storage tank; a "regassification" facility, where the super-chilled compact liquid would return to its gaseous state; transfer piping; and transmission lines. The country's only existing LNG import facilities are in Everett, Mass., Louisiana, Georgia, and Maryland.

Journal photo / Andrew Dickerman SITE SEEING: Retired Massachusetts Institute of Technology Prof. James Fay, left, tours a former fuel oil tank farm in Fall River, the proposed site for a liquefied natural gas facility. He is escorted by state Rep. David Sullivan.

At each stage, Fay said, there's a risk for spilling some of the LNG, and a spill at any point could cause a fire with skin-searing heat.

Such a fire would give off about the same heat as a pop-up toaster would, if a person stuck his or her hand in the toast slots. In scientific terms, Fay says, that's about 5 kilowatts of heat per square meter.

After just 40 seconds, this fire could cause second-degree burns or cause wooden buildings to burst into flame.

Fay said the government agency responsible for licensing LNG import terminals has not taken into account the possibility of larger spills when the it assesses safety risks.

Fay's report considers spills in which just one half of one cargo hold on an LNG tanker is ignited by a boat-bomb. The tankers coming into Fall River, Somerset and Providence would have four to six holds.

Last night, the researcher presented slides showing the wide-ranging fire that could spread if an explosion occurred on one of the tankers while it was bound within the narrow confines of the Taunton River.

A fire at the shoreline storage tank could engulf five square miles of land in Fall River and nearly as much land across the river in Somerset.

If the fuel ignited while a tanker was coming up the shipping channel, going from Narragansett Bay to Mount Hope Bay, it could scald portions of Warren, Jamestown, and Newport, and areas along the Taunton River, he said.

A fire ignited while the ship was beneath the Braga Bridge, for example, could spread inland and reach beyond Government Center.

To protect neighborhoods from the potential risks of an LNG facility, Fay said, each project requires many approvals. The final licensing authority rests with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which works in conjunction with other agencies like the Coast Guard and Department of Transportation.

Fay criticized the regulatory commission's safety standards, saying they are out of date, adopted more than 30 years ago, before threats of terrorist attacks loomed.

Even without terrorist threats, he said, the possibility of a fire exists.

Although the LNG industry had touted a safety record spanning more than 40 years, an explosion at an LNG facility in Skikda, Algeria, on Monday killed at least 27 people, injured 72 others, and leveled 227 acres.

The Fall River facility is slated to cover just 68 acres. The Somerset facility would be on 15 acres.

During a question-and-answer session, even some residents who were skeptical about a potential terrorist threat expressed concerns about bringing LNG to Fall River.

"I believe we're getting obsessed with terrorism," said Frank Clynes, of Swansea. "But human stupidity is the common culprit."

Fay said the exact cause of the blast in Algeria has not been determined, but both terrorism and human error are possibilities.

Richard Cabral, another Swansea resident, said he was concerned about the two nursing homes and the housing project that lie within yards of the proposed site.

Public officials expressed a range of concerns.

Event organizer state Rep. David N. Sullivan, D-Fall River, said he feared the city may not be able to afford adequate public safety if the facility is sited here. He said the city might not be able to compete with cities around Boston Harbor for homeland security grants.

State Rep. Philip Travis, D-Rehoboth, said the state would not approve a similar terminal for Everett, in Boston Harbor, if given the chance again, but might allow such a facility to slide into the South Coast.

Travis said he feared that the federal government was putting these facilities on the "fast track."

Fay agreed. "You need to really become interested to make sure this facility is going to be safe if it is put in, and not put in if it's not going to be safe."

Jessica Resnick-Ault can be contacted by phone at 508-674-8401 or by e-mail at JRAult(at)projo.com.